Hebrews 2:10-18 Jesus Christ: Merciful and Faithful High Priest

We have all heard watched movies and heard stories of people
getting lost in the woods or stranded on a deserted island. You may be able to
recall an actual time that you got lost. Put yourself in that position for a
moment. Can you imagine being in the middle of a forest that you have never
been in before? Forests can cover acres and acres of land, can’t they? Imagine
being there for days and cannot get yourself out of that place. Then imagine
that a woodsman shows up there in the middle of the woods; he grabs your hand
and begins to lead you out. You would be crazy not to follow him, wouldn’t you?
There are no paths out of those woods, but this mountaineer begins beating down
a path. He sweats and groans, gets cuts and bruises, but he is forging a trail
out of that desperate place. Without that man, you would simply die in those
woods. That man would be a Savior, wouldn’t He? He would also be a Pioneer, a Trailblazer.

Now, if you push the analogy too far, it will no longer
stand, but this is exactly what Christ has done for us. He is the Captain of our
great salvation, a Pioneer of a special work. The pioneering work that He has
done sets captives free. It offers salvation from the wrath of God for the
whole world, all who will call on the name of the Lord. Hebrews declares this
to us in 2:10-18. Will you take a look at that passage with me this morning?

READ Scripture- This
is the Word of God

The Source of
Salvation (10)

Verse ten is an introductory verse into this next passage.
It declares to Christians the source of their great salvation. It continues the
theme introduced in verse nine, which we saw last week, of Christ’s atoning
death. In this passage, we will see an explanation of the “grace of God.”

We are told that it was fitting that God the Father would
perfect God the Son through sufferings. What makes that so appropriate? How is
it that Christ was made perfect in sufferings? Let’s tackle that first
question. Hebrews has gone to great lengths to show the majesty of Christ, but
now it goes to great lengths to show His humility. How is it appropriate to
make God perfect through sufferings? This is the great mystery of the ages.
This is the great doctrine of Christianity. No pagan in ancient times and no
person in modern times can wrap their mind around the idea that God can suffer.
In fact, that would have been an absurd thought to those of the first century.
The gods were mighty and powerful, wise and untouchable. Then, Christians come
along preaching a God, The God of the universe who has suffered in the place of
all humanity (meaning, suffering to the point of death on the cross). The
emphasis of verse ten is on the word “fitting.” As one commentator has said, “.
. . what God has done in the suffering of Jesus is in line with his holiness
and love and has accomplished God’s plan to redeem people” (Guthrie, 107). In
Christ’s sufferings that righteousness of God was satisfied and the love of God
was fully evidenced. It was appropriate for Christ to be perfected through
sufferings because it may Him both Just and the Justifier of men and women. The
phrase “made perfect” refers to His completion of the work. It is the same root
word that Christ used on the cross when He said, “It is finished.” For Christ
to be made perfect means that He brought the plan of the Father to its intended
completion, its end.

The completion of this suffering was appropriate, as we have
seen, but it also made Christ the Captain of salvation because He brings many
sons and daughters to glory. The word “Captain” has been translated several
ways. The NIV uses the word “Pioneer” while other translations uses a variety
of terms such as Founder, Leader, Author, and Source, among others. Hebrews
means to tell us that Christ has a preeminent and unique place in salvation
history. He is the Trailblazer. He has done something that no one else could
do. He is the first, the first to do this thing and the first in rank. He is
the leader. He is that mountaineer who finds the lost person in the woods and
beats down a path to get them out. He is the one who sweats and groans in
behalf of another. He gets cuts and bruises to lead the lost out of the place
of desperation. He has done so to such a great extent that analogies can only
help us to understand what He has done because an illustration could never
fully explain the magnitude of His saving work.

If He is the Captain, then He must be leading someone. Who
is it that He leads, and where is He leading them? He is leading many sons and
daughters, and He is leading them to glory. The sons and daughters who are
being led are of the household of faith. It is not just anyone that He leads to
glory, but only those who are God’s people by faith. Glory is “the heavenly
realm in which people experience the presence of God” (Guthrie, 107). Jesus
takes us to heaven.

A Holy Family (11-13)

The great doctrine of the Christian Scriptures is that one
which says that God became a man in order that He might redeem sinful humanity.
God immersed Himself into humanity in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. The
New Testament is clear on this doctrine. Listen to some of the verses: “The
Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14) “[He] made Himself of no
reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of
men. And being found in appearance as a man. . .” (Phlp 2:7-8) “God was
manifested in the flesh. . .” (1 Tim 3:16). “Jesus Christ has come in the
flesh. . .” (1 John 4:2). “. . . concerning His Son, who was born of a
descendant of David according to the flesh. . .” (Rom 1:3). “But when the
fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman. . .” (Gal
4:4). “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was
rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might
become rich.” (2 Cor 8:9).

In the incarnation, Christ has completely identified Himself
with humanity. He has made Himself a brother of all those who will trust in
Him. He is the sanctifier, we are those who are being sanctified, and we are
all of the same family. He is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters. In
verses twelve and thirteen we get scriptural proof to that effect from Psalm 22
and Isaiah 8. These two passages are chosen because of their reference to
brethren and God’s people being called children, both passages are about Christ
living with mankind, and they also speak of Jesus’ suffering (Guthrie, 110).
This makes for great background for the author’s point that we are all family
of the Lord Jesus Christ.

He Destroyed Death
and the Devil (14-16)

In verses fourteen through sixteen, we see the reason for
the incarnation. It was absolutely necessary for Christ to put on flesh and
blood and move into our neighborhood. This was the plan of the Father. It was
the only way that God had designated for the sin problem to be remedied. What
was it He specifically did to lead us to salvation? He destroyed death and the
one who had the power of death, the devil. He freed us from the fear of death.

“Thus, Jesus took on our flesh and blood to nullify the
devil’s work” (Guthrie, 110). Remember, Satan is an angel, a fallen one, and
Christ is greater than all of the angels. His name is far greater than any of
theirs. Here is the logic: to undo what Satan had done, Christ would have to
die; to die, Christ would have to become a man; and that is exactly what He
did! Not only is the devil defeated, but death is defeated as well. If death is
defeated, then we have freedom from the fear of death. Without His great work
of salvation, we would all our lives long fear death. We would always have the
sense that it could happen at any time, and we could do nothing about it. And
after death there is what? Judgment. What a great relief, a great freedom
Christ has given us. Death is nothing for the believer, but access into the
grace of God. It is the time when we will see Him face to face. There is no
fear in this. There is love, joy, and peace.

Verse sixteen mentions quickly and briefly, as if to put the
nail in the coffin of the idea that angels are as great as Christ Jesus, that
God does not give aid to angels like He has the seed of Abraham. We are
Abraham’s children because we have come to God by faith just like he had. There
is no aid for angels, and there is no salvation for fallen angels. God has done
this for us.

Merciful and Faithful
High Priest (17-18)

The last two verses conclude this section. We encounter the
word “therefore.” In light of all that has just been said, the author states, Christ had to be made like His brethren.
This is what makes Him a merciful and faithful High Priest. A major section on
the doctrine of Christ’s High Priesthood will come soon in the book of Hebrews,
but here we are told that Christ made propitiation/atonement for the sins of
the people. He suffered to the point of death in our behalf. He was tempted and
did not fall. Because of this He is able to Caption us to glory, atone for our
sins, completely identify with us, come to our aid in all things including
temptation. To be High Priest, he had to be human as well because High Priests
were taken from among humans.

Conclusion and
Christian Application

(1) Follow the
leader. He will lead you to glory. When you are tempted, lean on Him.

(2) God has
completely immersed Himself into humanity that He may suffer to pay the penalty
for our sin. In turn, you should be completely immersed into Jesus Christ. Give
your life to Him- your time, energy, money, mind, devotion, and praise.

(3) This is such
a great salvation. Do not harden your hearts to this message or, worse, do not
neglect this by simply drifting away. Jesus Christ is a Pioneer. He has forged
the path for you out of sin and He shields you from the wrath of God that is to
come. Do not ignore this great work.